You’re constantly exposed to germs. And when your immune system works the way it’s supposed to, most of those germs get addressed before they can balloon into full-on health challenges.
But if your immune system doesn’t work optimally, you become more susceptible to anything that’s going around, and can sometimes develop long-term chronic conditions. You may feel sick, tired, achy, stressed a lot of the time, and maybe even a little concerned and/or scared as well.
When you’re immunocompromised (your immune system does too little) or have autoimmune issues (your immune system does too much), you have to give your body lots of extra support so it can keep you safe and healthy.
And since your gut microbiome (the trillions of bacteria that live in your gut) houses 70% of your immune system, keeping your gut in healthy balance is especially critical.
A Healthy Immune Response
When your immune system works properly, it responds to threats quickly and effectively so it can prevent most health challenges from taking hold.
Every day, you come into contact with infectious substances called, “antigens” which trigger an alarm for your immune system. As soon as that alarm sounds, your immune system springs into action and sends out immunoglobulins (also known as antibodies) to fight the foreign substances.
Your immune system produces a few different types of immunoglobulins, but the most important is Immunoglobulin G, or IgG. IgG antibodies constantly search your body for germs so they can catch them before you get sick. In fact, nearly 80% of all the germ-fighters in your body are IgG antibodies – that’s how crucial they are for your continued good health.
Unfortunately, millions of people struggle with immune systems that function at the extremes. In some cases, the immune system under-reacts and can’t effectively fight infections. In other instances, the immune system overreacts and actually causes illness. Both of those extremes can lead to severe health issues…
When Your Immune System Under-reacts
If you’re immunocompromised – also called immunodeficient – your immune system isn’t strong enough to protect you against infections. That can make you get sick more frequently or take longer than usual to fight off infections. Many factors can weaken the immune system, including:
- Bacterial and viral infections
- Environmental toxins
- Chronic stress
- Aging
- Some autoimmune conditions (like rheumatoid arthritis)
- Malnutrition
- Cancer
- Diabetes
- Liver or kidney disease
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation therapy
- Transplant (anti-rejection) drugs
- Steroids
- Medications (called immunosuppressants) that treat autoimmune diseases
- Pregnancy
When you are immunocompromised, your body doesn’t make enough antibodies – the special immune cells – like the IgG (immunoglobulin G) – that respond to infectious bacteria and viruses (collectively called antigens). And without a substantial supply of antibodies, it’s much more difficult to avoid or recover from infections.
When Your Immune System Overreacts
With autoimmune conditions, your immune system overreacts and mistakenly attacks your own healthy cells.
Immune systems that function properly can tell the difference between cells that belong and invaders that don’t. But with autoimmune conditions, the immune system confuses your body’s cells with foreign cells. That